Augustine

2026-03-29 - 01:25

Tobago Correspondent Chief Secretary Farley Augustine has hinted at a grand opening of the spanking new ANR Robinson International Airport in time for Tobago Carnival. In an interview with the Sunday Guardian last Thursday, Augustine said the buildout of the $1.2 billion airport continues but would not be completed by the first quarter of this year. He believes July/August is a more realistic expectation, but said a spectacular opening to coincide with the fifth annual festival, scheduled for October 30 to November 1, is strongly being considered. The annual event has been growing in popularity, with approximately 37,500 people, mostly Trinidadians, visiting the island for the 2025 celebrations. Augustine said it would be a mistake to open the new terminal and have passengers traversing an empty shell. He said the overall experience must include restaurants and other concessionaires to add to the modern ambience. The Tobago People’s Party leader said he has visited the new terminal no less than four times in the last two weeks and is working closely with the central Government and the Airports Authority. Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander and other officials toured the facility on March 20 to ensure that security assets are in place for operation. Minister of Works and Infrastructure Jearlean John is expected to inspect the new runway soon for an official handover. Augustine said, “Essentially what we have now is a shell — a beautiful shell nonetheless. “All we have there is a terminal, we have seating, we have counters, but it requires some buildout. It requires concessionaires to go into the space and buildout their assets and provide their service.” Former prime minister Dr Keith Rowley, in March 2025, during a practical opening of the new terminal, said the airport has a capacity for three million passengers annually. Ex-finance minister Colm Imbert had predicted the new terminal would be operational by July 2025. During the budget presentation in October, Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo adjusted the timeline to March 2026. Concerns over quality of hotel rooms However, Augustine said the biggest hindrance to Tobago capitalising on the new terminal and a possible boost in arrivals on the island is its lack of quality rooms. The Hotel and Tourism Association (THTA) has estimated that Tobago has around 3,000 registered rooms, while the unregistered accounts for approximately 2,000. Augustine said, “Our biggest challenge right now is the quality of rooms that would attract the front of the plane and that would attract larger carriers and other carriers to Tobago.” He said the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) is negotiating with various airlines to bump up the number of direct flights while also working with the THTA on a programme to improve the quality of rooms and their packages. In the past six years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, the THA and the central Government offered grants and other stimulus for hotel renovations. In 2020, the central Government announced a $50 million Tourism Accommodation Relief Grant, accessed by over 60 properties for upgrades. In November 2025, four hotels — Crown Point Beach Hotel, Shepherd’s Inn, Tropikist Beach Hotel and Resort, and Sparkle’s B Lovely Events and Accommodation — received approximately $1.7 million through the Tourism Accommodation Upgrade Project and phase two of the Tourism Accommodation Relief Grant programme. Last month, Augustine urged local businesses to get their financial records in order to access the loan-guarantee programme. Finance Secretary Petal-Ann Roberts said subscription to the programme was much lower than anticipated as she amended the minimum loan from $750,000 to $375,000. Augustine said the THA is looking to revise its policy on grant distribution and is collaborating with the Tobago Tourism Agency Ltd (TTAL) to be more proactive. “Whether we should go in ourselves, identify at least 100 rooms in this fiscal year and get them fixed in the quality that is required, instead of giving them a grant and hoping for the best.” ‘Frugal hoteliers need to sell’ THTA president Reginald MacLean agreed there aren’t sufficient quality rooms on the island. However, he blamed frugal hotel owners for allowing their assets to depreciate and also pointed to a lack of support from the State. “We have hotels that the owners of the hotels need to sell them so Tobago can get back a proper room stock. People probably not gonna like me for saying that, but that is the reality. If we can’t get people to fix their hotels, we not gonna move forward,” MacLean said. He felt the grants and low-cost loans offered by the THA and central Government were woefully insufficient. “A bank is not lending tourism in Tobago money. They are not interested in funding tourism, so how is tourism gonna grow unless the government puts funds into low-cost loans to the private sector?” He believes $1 billion is required to reignite the tourism industry, including a revamped marketing strategy. “Tobago needs a billion dollars to get the existing plant on the island back in order. And when I say plant, it’s not just rooms. You have a lot of restaurants that have closed and all of that needs to come back to the fold.” He said the airport is not the panacea that many are making it out to be. MacLean said investment in tourism would only make sense if people could see a viable route to returns. He said the airport may struggle to fill out the concessionaire booths because of the low number of international arrivals. In 2024, the island attracted 24,500 visitors, a significant drop from its peak in the 1980s and 1990s when it was attracting close to 90,000 people. He said changing the Tobago Land Act is pivotal to shifting the momentum. “That is what they are avoiding. To fix it, you have to make some hard choices.” MacLean: Tobago targets South America, more flights MacLean said the association is doing its best and expanding its horizon beyond the traditional US and European markets. He confirmed efforts are being made to tap into South America, particularly Colombia, Brazil, Panama, Suriname, Guyana and Venezuela. “We are changing certain marketing strategies with the hope we can get some increased people in Tobago based on what is happening in the rest of the world. “That is where we are making a very big push at the moment, but remember every time you go into a market it takes a while to build that market... You will see some improvement in travel from there in October.” MacLean declined to say which airlines the association have been engaging, saying it would be premature to reveal details. There have been calls in the past for T&T, as the most southern Caribbean island, to tap into South America’s potential, considering the large migrant population already here. Meanwhile, Augustine said Tobago would not be able to move three million passengers when the new terminal is open, but the intention is to get there. “Even the other islands that are currently doing better than we are, they are not hitting the two million mark, maybe one million, most are under a million. It is about the ability to carry that load, but we don’t realistically expect to carry that load immediately. Tobago at its peak was hitting 87,000 annually and then it fell off sharply.” He said the Tobago House of Assembly is working on its own as well as with Civil Aviation to get more airlines to the island. Tourism Secretary Zorisha Hackett was in Germany from March 3 to 5 for ITB Berlin, the world’s largest trade show. The Sunday Guardian sent questions to her about the success of the trip and Tobago’s readiness for the terminal opening, but she did not respond up to the time of publication. The Division of Tourism posted a Daily Mail article on its Facebook page last week showing UK searches for Tobago have increased by 79 per cent. British Airways has been heavily promoting Caribbean destinations as turmoil in the Middle East has made other routes unprofitable due to the hike in jet fuel costs and closed airspace. MacLean is hoping Tobago can capitalise in the short term on this increased demand, especially during the winter season.